It was recently announced that, due to recent underperforming films at the box-office, DreamWorks is currently no longer working on the sequel to the 2011 hit film Puss in Boots.  However, according to Antonio Banderas, the man behind Puss in Boots, the sequel is currently still in the works over at DreamWorks Animation.  And, Shrek is returning?

In a recent interview with Empire Magazine, Banderas revealed some new details about the Puss in Boots sequel (that previously took the working title Puss in Boots 2: Nine Lives & 40 Thieves). In the interview Banderas reveals that Shrek might be returning in the sequel. “I heard some rumours that Shrek may be coming back,” says Banderas.

He also revealed that DreamWorks is currently working on the film’s script. “They are restructuring the script now, we started… but that’s the process,” Banderas explains. “A lot of people participate in the creation of the script and the story and the narrative, everything. And they include you! They take you to California and you read the script with them, give them your ideas, and a couple of months later you see a new script where everything has been touched [up].”

Even though Puss in Boots 2: Nine Lives & 40 Thieves was one of the films put on hold when DreamWorks reimagined its current lineup of upcoming films (after some of its recent films underperformed at the box-office), we can pretty much assume that this film is still in the works.  This is especially true when the success of the Shrek films, the Puss in Boots spin-off, and the The Adventures of Puss in Boots show that debuted on Netflix earlier this year are taken into account.

If it would make sense to have Shrek return in the sequel is another question. The working title of the sequel clearly hints that the film will have an Arabian Nights theme.  Considering this theme, I just don’t know how Shrek will fit. The characters and world from the original Puss in Boots are so different from the Shrek films and I just don’t see why DreamWorks would add a character, like Shrek, who just doesn’t belong in that world.

The Puss in Boots sequel was originally planned to come out in late 2018. We have no official word yet on when it’s supposed to be released now.

How do you feel about this news? Would you like to see Shrek return in the ‘Puss in Boots’ sequel? 

Edited by: Hannah Wilkes